Salary Calculator South Africa

Gross vs net salary in South Africa

Your gross salary is what your employment contract says. Your net (take-home) salary is what actually lands in your bank account each month after statutory and voluntary deductions. Understanding the gap between the two is the single most important thing when comparing job offers or negotiating a raise in South Africa.

Worked example — R25,000 a month, age 30, no medical aid

1. Annual equivalent: R25,000 × 12 = R300,000.
2. Tax on the 2026/27 table: R300,000 falls in the 26% bracket, so tax is R44,118 + 26% × (R300,000 − R245,100) = R58,392.
3. Less the primary rebate of R17,820 → annual PAYE R40,572, about R3,381 a month.
4. UIF: 1% × R17,712 ceiling = R177.12.
5. Net take-home ≈ R21,442 a month.

Take-home pay at common salaries (2026/27, under 65, no medical aid)

Statutory deductions

• PAYE — income tax on the SARS sliding scale, less your rebates and medical credits.
• UIF (1%) — capped at R177.12 per month on the R17,712 ceiling. Your employer adds a matching 1%.
• SDL — 1% paid by the employer only; it never comes off your payslip.

Rebates and thresholds that lower your PAYE

• Primary rebate R17,820 (all ages) — no tax below R99,000 a year.
• Secondary rebate R9,765 extra from age 65 — threshold R153,250.
• Tertiary rebate R3,249 extra from age 75 — threshold R171,300.
• Medical tax credit R376 for the first two members, R254 for each additional member, per month.

Common voluntary deductions

• Retirement fund / pension / provident fund contributions (tax deductible up to 27.5% of remuneration, R350,000 cap).
• Medical aid — reduces PAYE via the medical tax credit.
• Group life or disability cover.
• Garnishee or emoluments attachment orders (EAOs).
• Union dues.

How a retirement contribution changes your net pay

On R25,000 a month, contributing 7.5% (R1,875) reduces taxable income to R23,125, cutting PAYE by roughly R487. So the R1,875 saving costs you about R1,388 in take-home — one of the most efficient ways to improve a package without the employer paying more.

Weekly and fortnightly pay

SARS taxes each pay period on its annualised equivalent: weekly × 52, fortnightly × 26, monthly × 12. The UIF ceiling converts to R4,087.38 a week and R8,174.77 a fortnight. If you are paid weekly, do not simply divide a monthly figure by four — use 4.333 weeks per month.

Payslip must-haves under the BCEA

Section 33 of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act requires every payslip to show employer name and address, employee name and occupation, pay period, ordinary and overtime hours, gross wage, all deductions itemised, and net pay. Payroll Africa produces compliant payslips automatically.

Pair this with our PAYE calculator, UIF calculator and cost to company calculator for the full picture.